Powerful hope

America is a great nation, perhaps not the greatest nation in the world. It is arrogant to proclaim superiority above all. While we strive for greatness every day, we still have large problems ahead of us.

We showed the world on November 4th 2008 that we truly have come a long way from the racist, sexist, bigoted America of the past. After a campaign in which brutal and dishonest character attacks, which could justifiably be labeled slander, we elected the man who throughout it all maintained his professionalism and presented a statesman like appearance. We elected a man who never stooped to character attacks on his opponent.

In electing America’s first black president we also did something America has never done before. We elected the first outspoken anti-war president during a time of war. With genocide daily in Darfur, civil unrest in Tibet, Russia attacking Georgia, and our own Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan the globe faces numerous problems. Does this mean that every American wants us to pull out of Iraq? I don’t think so. I think it means that after eight years of foreign policy that at times seemed to alienate everyone on the globe; we are ready for someone who will try to share what is best about America with the world.

I watched Sen. Mccain’s concession speech, and Sen Obama’s acceptance speech at 0700 in Iraq. They both spoke of the troops. They both acknowledged that a great thing had happened that night when the people went to the polls and made their voices heard. More importantly they both spoke of making America better and they both spoke from their hearts.

Hope is a powerful thing. Developed and nurtured it could turn into a movement that makes us rethink a great many things. However it turns out, I believe that each and every child that grows up in America after yesterday’s election will grow up with a better and brighter future because of it.

Shop on Amazon and support This I Believe

We receive up to 10% of every purchase you make on Amazon through this link. So do all your holiday shopping here and help support This I Believe!

Top 100 Essays USB Drive

This USB drive contains 100 of the top This I Believe audio broadcasts of the last ten years, plus some favorites from Edward R. Murrow's radio series of the 1950s. It's perfect for personal or classroom use! Click here to learn more.

This week’s essay

Growing up in the former Yugoslavia, lawyer Djenita Pasic enjoyed the peace of her religiously diverse country. But after the fall of communism and the outbreak of the Bosnian War, Pasic was forced to reevaluate her ideas about religion and tolerance. Click here to read her essay.